Sizing Deck Footings

Don’t guess at your deck footings. Dig in and figure it out.

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Mike Guertin takes the guesswork out of deck loads in “Sizing Deck Footings.” Footings transfer the weight of a deck and its occupants to the ground. How many footings you need and how big to make them is specific to each deck. Doing the calculations takes only a few minutes, ensures that you are following best building practices, and keeps you from digging more than necessary. The size and spacing of footings tie directly to the maximum spacing between posts of the beam they support. A larger beam can span a greater distance, requiring fewer but larger footings. Knowing the total load in psf, the size of the deck, and the number of footings, you can calculate what each footing has to support. The footing size is based on this load and the bearing capacity of the soil. With plenty of guides for determining beam configurations and footing size, style, load, and frequency, Guertin addresses the central concerns determining safe and accurate support.

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